Iowa transfer ready for Saturday's opener at Oklahoma

RUSTON – Not one, not two, not three, not four, but five. That's how many years Cody Sokol has waited for his first start as a Division I quarterback.

Technically, when Sokol suits up Saturday as Louisiana Tech's starting quarterback at Oklahoma, it will seem like much longer than five years since he graduated high school in Phoenix, Arizona, in search for a Division I scholarship.

"It's going to feel amazing," Sokol said Wednesday. "I've been waiting pretty much my whole life for this moment, and I'm going to take control of it. I'm going to take it all in. I'm just really excited to get on the field."

Sokol, a graduate transfer from Iowa, was entrenched in a three-week long quarterback battle with Ryan Higgins before Tech coach Skip Holtz finally announced Monday night that Sokol won the job.

Since then, Sokol has put forth all of his time and energy toward the No. 4-ranked Sooners where he'll play in front of several family members, including his mother and other relatives making the drive in from Des Moines, Iowa.

The 6-foot-2, 215-pounder contends not much has changed in terms of attitude or demeanor since Monday, but Tech offensive coordinator Tony Petersen can sense a "little bit more assertiveness" and a "weight off his shoulders."

With the uncertainty behind him, Sokol can now look ahead to Oklahoma's defense.

"Right now, we're just fine-tuning everything we're going to do in the Oklahoma game," Petersen said. "He's getting a lot more snaps with the one's right now and just getting him mentally prepared for every play we're going to run and all the situations."

After setting records at Scottsdale Community College in Arizona, Sokol transferred to Iowa in 2012 but never recorded any statistics with the Hawkeyes. He redshirted his first year then lost out on the starting job during spring practice in 2013.

It was widely assumed Sokol would be the starter when Tech announced his transfer in May, although the job wasn't about to appear on a silver platter.

Sokol did enough during a pair of scrimmages and 20-plus practices to eventually sell Holtz and the coaching staff that he was the man for the job.

"He's got great confidence in himself," Holtz said. "He's a mature young man and he's been there before. His confidence comes because he is so prepared mentally and that's why we talked about one of the reasons we went with him."

Plus, Sokol seemed like a natural fit as Tech transitions from a spread-based team to an offense that will feature multiple looks, whether that's playing from under center or adding a fullback or tight end to seal the edge.

During his collegiate career, Sokol went from a wide-open spread attack at Scottsdale CC to a traditional pro-style offense at Iowa. Tech's offense is somewhere in the middle, with the needle pointing more toward a spread offense, but it has nonetheless prepared Sokol for this season.

"Going from a spread offense with what I was really comfortable to, to getting under center at Iowa and changing it up a bit, gave me some versatility," Sokol said. "I think I really excel in this multiple offenses because I've gotten a little bit of each."

That precise knowledge and savvy of an older quarterback has been on display all throughout camp and it was the same old song and dance Wednesday when Sokol noted how Higgins still has a bright future despite the disappointment of losing the competition for the second straight year.

"He's only going to keep improving," Sokol said of Higgins. "I've been in his shoes before and it's hard. It's hard when you don't get the call. But he's done a great job keeping his head up and fighting every single day."